How to prevent rolling an ankle?

My latest worry is getting a rolled ankle. Last time I played, I jumped and landed a bit off on the outside side of my right foot and it still hurt like hell. Thank god, the pain has come to past, and the scary memory is still with me.

I think part of the cause was that my kswiss tennis shoes have a high platform and a relatively squared side edges. Therefore, you either land stably on the bottom platform or risk landing on the very side.

So, how do we prevent an ankle from rolling /bending? Low platform shoes for stability? Round side edge so you can reflexively turn back to the natural form when you do not land 100% stably?

i wear barricades and when you wear a BRAND new one, well, i feel like the shoes is slanting my foot a bit to keep me balanced, same with my clip-on cycling shoes(because my pedal is a clip-on) and in there they raise the inner foot up (in the sole) so that my ankles won't hit the bike in anyway. but i think the barricades have the raising part outside on the soles. well, personally i can't wear ankle braces are tooo uncomfortable for me.

I think having a low platform allows your feet to feel the ground more so they can be nimble. And, when you run sideway, which is when you experience the greatest risk, you want the edge to be a bit rounded so your feet can recover to their natural states. Think about it, do we ever roll our ankle when we run barefooted. Our feet are nimble enough to take care of themselves.

Hmm... No one has mentioned strengthening the ankles. Could someone with more experience rolling their ankles speak on any type of strengthening that a PT had them do after an injury? I've actually never come close to rolling an ankle, I mean, I can run on the side of my shoes and feel no pain.

Hmm... No one has mentioned strengthening the ankles. Could someone with more experience rolling their ankles speak on any type of strengthening that a PT had them do after an injury? I've actually never come close to rolling an ankle, I mean, I can run on the side of my shoes and feel no pain.

Click to expand...

Basically once the ankle's rolled it's weakened permenantly. There's some stretching one can do (just the basic ankle stretches) to help strengthening it to some degree (very little) but it will never recover to where it was before.

I am a former skateboarder and have destroyed my ankles. My two pieces of advice are to fall when you land on you ankle akwardly rather than try to stand up on it so you don't twist it and once it is twisted to strenthen it slowly. My PT showed me an exercise where you cross your legs and push the side of hurt one against the side of the healthy one. You can get them to be less prone t twisting but as stated above once they are hurt they are much easier to reinjure, fortunately the pain gets to be a little easier to recover from. The first time I twisted mine I came down from about four feet up in the air and stomped straight down on it.

I think having a low platform allows your feet to feel the ground more so they can be nimble. And, when you run sideway, which is when you experience the greatest risk, you want the edge to be a bit rounded so your feet can recover to their natural states.

Click to expand...

I agree with you. I think the low platform (feet closer to the ground) is extremely important. Imagine trying to balance your ankle and change direction with a ball under your feet as opposited to a pancake. I think many shoe inserts that are thick, thick socks, and thick shoes need to be avoided.

As far as the rounded edges, I also agree with you on this. What is odd is that no tennis shoes that I have ever seen have rounded edges, nor do any running shoes. Anyone know more about this? What is the downside that I am missing?

I think the correct size and fit is also important, if not the most important thing. You have to have a good fit with absolutely no sliding of your foot inside of the shoe.

I've rolled each of my ankles pretty bad recently wearing Adidas Barricade IV's. Its a long story, but It started when I rolled my right ankle while playing with them. I took time off, and came back to the game wearing Prince MV4's (always my favorite, but gave Adidas another chance for some reason). I played heavily for about 6 weeks, then sent the pair in for warranty replacement. I did something stupid and wore the Barricade's again and no sooner than the first time out did I roll my other ankle. This sprain, like the other injury, put me on crutches, and took me out for a few weeks. Now I am back to MV4's and OV-1's for good. I've learned my lesson.

I also still feel pain in awkward positions, and still experience some other odd sensations. Here is a good link I found with a couple of excercises (also good general ankle sprain info) for rehab that are worth checking out:

Thanks god, you understand my points. I was getting worried that I was speaking greek and felt like an oddman with my observation.

This is copied from the site you posted:
"The most common type is the inversion ankle sprain, in which the ankle rolls over on the outside." "Anything that makes the ankle 'tip over'"

There you go. High risen platform and sharp side edges would increase the chance for an ankle to tip over / roll on the outside. (God, I feel the pain just imagining it).

Sorry to hear about your incidents. I was starting to think the barricades were the ultimate tennis shoes. Recently I have become conscious about running sideway. Instead, I would try to turn the body and run.

You can help this by balancing on a Bosu. That will help your tennis as well because it improves balance. Also there are stretches you can do that strengthen the sides of your legs. I really dont know how to describe them but its basically rolling your legs out and in - best to ask a pt person (that is where I got them).

I used to roll my ankles all the time, back in 2005 I rolled my right one so bad it was swollen and I could not put any weight on it for three days. Eventually the swelling went down and I decided to start looking for ankle braces and new tennis shoes. I ditched the new balances I had and did a little research. I read about how great Babolat shoes were for ankle stability so I figured I would try a pair and then see about getting some ankle braces. The babolat shoes were so great I never sought ought getting the ankle braces, they really are amazing for ankle stability. I would suggest trying a pair!!! They are pretty great.